Letter to John R. Boule II, Colonel of the US Army Corps of Engineers - Bishop, Schumer Push for Army Corps to Dredge Montauk Harbor

Letter

Colonel Boule,

Numerous reports have come to our offices' attention concerning worsening shoaling in Montauk Harbor Inlet. It is our hope that we can act before any vessels are damaged as a result of these dangerous conditions.

Commercial fishing vessels with experienced captains are currently forced to wait offshore up to several hours and even then, often end up scraping bottom and narrowly averting disaster. Additionally, shoaling is threatening the deployment of US Coast Guard assets stationed at Montauk, including the 87-foot cutter Ridley.

The Army Corps of Engineers' current cycle would not result in dredging at Montauk Harbor Inlet until Fiscal Year 2013. While we understand the basis for this cycle, it appears that conditions on the ground have changed.

In addition to the needs at Montauk Harbor Inlet, the Army Corps is also aware of worsening erosion to the west of the inlet, along the beach in front of Soundview Drive and Captain Kidd's Path which is imperiling several structures. While the Army Corps is working on a long-term solution to these issues, we would like to explore the possibility of using material from a possible emergency navigation project to address imperiled structures in Montauk.

We request that the Army Corps of Engineers do an immediate survey of Montauk Harbor Inlet along with a coordination meeting in Montauk with local users and officials with the goal of exploring an expedited timeline for dredging. At that meeting, we would also like planning personnel present to discuss current plans for the Lake Montauk Harbor project.

Thank you for your consideration of this request. Please contact Jon Schneider of Congressman Bishop's office at (631) 696-6500 and Gerry Petrella of Senator Schumer's office at (631) 753-098 to coordinate and to let us know if there is anything our offices can do to assist you.

Sincerely,

Charles Schumer Tim Bishop
United States Senator Member of Congress

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